(A)Political Constituency Development Funds: Evidence from Pakistan

Most of the distributive politics literature focuses on how incumbent politicians allocate development resources in the absence of spending rules, and on the politicization of rules when they do determine distribution. What is less clear is whether politically neutral spending rules lead to neutral spending. Using new data on a long-running federal development fund and elections from Pakistan in a regression discontinuity design, the author presents strong evidence that the ruling party manipulated fund distribution to disproportionately benefit its co-partisans and punish the weakest opposition. Considering various factors, partisan bias is the most plausible explanation. These findings are important not only because the purpose of rules-based funds is to prevent politicized distribution but also because they have implications for development patterns and for using such funds to address questions about legislator effort and patronage patterns within constituencies, which requires assuming that legislators do receive their share of funds in the first place

Subspace hypercyclicity

A bounded linear operator T on Hilbert space is subspace-hypercyclic for a subspace M if there exists a vector whose orbit under T intersects the subspace in a relatively dense set. We construct examples to show that subspace-hypercyclicity is interesting, including a nontrivial subspace-hypercyclic operator that is not hypercyclic. There is a Kitai-like criterion that implies subspace-hypercyclicity and although the spectrum of a subspace-hypercyclic operator must intersect the unit circle, not every component of the spectrum will do so. We show that, like hypercyclicity, subspace-hypercyclicity is a strictly infinite-dimensional phenomenon. Additionally, compact or hyponormal operators can never be subspace-hypercyclic.Comment: 15 page

Historical and contemporary demography of leaf-toed geckos (Phyllodactylidae: Phyllodactylus) in the Mexican dry forest

Disentangling the relative influence of historical versus contemporary processes shaping the spatial distribution of genetic variation is critical if we are to effectively mitigate key biodiversity issues. We utilize a comprehensive approach based on different molecular marker types and analytical methods to understand the demographic consequences of recent habitat fragmentation in a spatially explicit context. We focus our efforts on native leaf-toed geckos (Phyllodactylus tuberculosus saxatilis) throughout fragmented habitat in the tropical dry forest of northern Mexico as recent evidence suggests that geographic ranges for these geckos may be much smaller than currently realized. However, no data are available regarding recent shifts in demographic trends and how these trends may correspond with recent fragmentation and introductions of non-native gecko species (Hemidactylus). Mitochondrial DNA sequences reveal substantial historical genetic divergence over a small geographic area (\u3c40 km). We find evidence for an increase in contemporary versus historical migration rates based on 10 microsatellite loci, but evidence that many populations suffer from recent reductions in effective population sizes. Landscape genetic analyses find that contemporary migration rates are significantly more correlated with the landscape versus historical migration rates or mtDNA divergence, suggesting that individuals have altered their dispersal routes in response to recent habitat changes. Taken together, this study suggests that long-term female philopatry, recent habitat fragmentation, and possibly introductions of non-native gecko species all contribute to the demographic patterns and the high degree of differentiation observed over fine-spatial scales in Mexican leaf-toed geckos

Landscape Genetics of Leaf-Toed Geckos in the Tropical Dry Forest of Northern Mexico

Habitat fragmentation due to both natural and anthropogenic forces continues to threaten the evolution and maintenance of biological diversity. This is of particular concern in tropical regions that are experiencing elevated rates of habitat loss. Although less well-studied than tropical rain forests, tropical dry forests (TDF) contain an enormous diversity of species and continue to be threatened by anthropogenic activities including grazing and agriculture. However, little is known about the processes that shape genetic connectivity in species inhabiting TDF ecosystems. We adopt a landscape genetic approach to understanding functional connectivity for leaf-toed geckos (Phyllodactylus tuberculosus) at multiple sites near the northernmost limit of this ecosystem at Alamos, Sonora, Mexico. Traditional analyses of population genetics are combined with multivariate GIS-based landscape analyses to test hypotheses on the potential drivers of spatial genetic variation. Moderate levels of within-population diversity and substantial levels of population differentiation are revealed by FST and Dest. Analyses using structuresuggest the occurrence of from 2 to 9 genetic clusters depending on the model used. Landscape genetic analysis suggests that forest cover, stream connectivity, undisturbed habitat, slope, and minimum temperature of the coldest period explain more genetic variation than do simple Euclidean distances. Additional landscape genetic studies throughout TDF habitat are required to understand species-specific responses to landscape and climate change and to identify common drivers. We urge researchers interested in using multivariate distance methods to test for, and report, significant correlations among predictor matrices that can impact results, particularly when adopting least-cost path approaches. Further investigation into the use of information theoretic approaches for model selection is also warranted

The multi-modality cardiac imaging approach to the Athlete's heart: an expert consensus of the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging

The term 'athlete's heart' refers to a clinical picture characterized by a slow heart rate and enlargement of the heart. A multi-modality imaging approach to the athlete's heart aims to differentiate physiological changes due to intensive training in the athlete's heart from serious cardiac diseases with similar morphological features. Imaging assessment of the athlete's heart should begin with a thorough echocardiographic examination. Left ventricular (LV) wall thickness by echocardiography can contribute to the distinction between athlete's LV hypertrophy and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). LV end-diastolic diameter becomes larger (>55 mm) than the normal limits only in end-stage HCM patients when the LV ejection fraction is <50%. Patients with HCM also show early impairment of LV diastolic function, whereas athletes have normal diastolic function. When echocardiography cannot provide a clear differential diagnosis, cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging should be performed. With CMR, accurate morphological and functional assessment can be made. Tissue characterization by late gadolinium enhancement may show a distinctive, non-ischaemic pattern in HCM and a variety of other myocardial conditions such as idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy or myocarditis. The work-up of athletes with suspected coronary artery disease should start with an exercise ECG. In athletes with inconclusive exercise ECG results, exercise stress echocardiography should be considered. Nuclear cardiology techniques, coronary cardiac tomography (CCT) and/or CMR may be performed in selected cases. Owing to radiation exposure and the young age of most athletes, the use of CCT and nuclear cardiology techniques should be restricted to athletes with unclear stress echocardiography or CMR

Bereavement, grief and consolation: emotional-affective geographies of loss during COVID-19

COVID-19 has resulted in a new global geographies of death ranging from cellular to global scales. These geographies are uneven, reflecting existing inequalities and failures of governance. In addition to death and bereavement, the pandemic has generated varied forms of loss and consolation, negative and positive affective atmospheres, whereby emotions are mobilised and politicised. Understanding these emotional-affective topographies, including ‘emotional-viral-loads’, is vital to wellbeing, resilience and unfolding policy interventions locally and globally